Governor Sununu Leads Strong GOP Performance In 2020 Fiscal Policy Report Card

Governor Chris Sununu’s common sense approach to fiscal policy in New Hampshire has earned national recognition from some of the country’s top economic minds, even in the face of a global pandemic that has posed major economic challenges across the country. The governor landed the top spot on the CATO Institute’s 2020 Fiscal Policy Report Card on America’s Governors, a report that credited his commitment to keeping taxes and government spending low, holding the line against a payroll tax, and cutting business tax rates.

Republican Governors Kim Reynolds of Iowa, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, and Mark Gordon of Wyoming join Governor Sununu in earning an “A” rating, and 10 states with the highest rankings are all led by Republicans. It comes as no surprise that in a report evaluating governors’ tax and spending choices, every state receiving an “F” rating has a Democratic governor in office. Overall, Republican governors have an average score of 56 points, compared to just 45 points for Democratic governors.

The 2020 Fiscal Policy Report Card on America’s Governors goes on to note that, “During economic downturns, Democratic governors often pursue tax increases to balance their budgets, while Republicans put greater focus on spending restraint,” and “…Republican governors tend to focus more on tax cuts and spending restraint than do Democrats.”

Watch CATO Institute Director of Tax Policy Studies Chris Edwards discuss what the A-ranked governors are doing right: